 It has been a totally bonkers week with the release of the first four patterns for Spirit of Flora on Wednesday and lots of preparation for the Wonder Wool Wales show, where we will be exhibiting at this weekend, with set up today!  In case you missed it - here is a recap of the Spirit of Flora pattern release: The first four patterns are now available. They can be purchased separately at a price of £3.95 each, or in a bundle of four patterns for £10.95, which means you save £4.85 compared to purchasing them all separately. The reason we have split the patterns up like this is so that you can cherry pick individual motifs if you want to. I think the possibilities for the layout of the motifs is pretty much endless and I am already thinking about what projects would look like made from just one block, or a couple. I was laying in bed last night thinking about what a beautiful blanket repeated blocks of the Tudor Rose motif would make!  There will be two further pattern releases over the next few months. The second set of four patterns will be released on June 19th and then the final set of four will be released on the 21st August, with the pricing per set in line with the first release - £10.95 for four patterns or £3.95 each.   You can find an introductory video on our YouTube Channel where I show the groups of motifs and explain which parts of the design can be found for free on the website. You can find more information on the website by following this link. When we released the patterns on Wednesday we initially had an issue with the listing on Ravelry as their moderators said our patterns were an infringement on those that appeared in the magazine. Obviously the patterns aren't, but it seems you cannot have repeated patterns for the same project listed on the site. Gemma has now been able to list the patterns on the main Spirit of Flora page , which you can find here. The patterns are listed at the top and you can follow the links to find them. If you need a little guidance when working through the patterns, don't forget that there is a dedicated Facebook group, which you can find here and Emma has been incredibly busy making accompanying video support for YouTube, which you can find by following this link. Thank you for all your incredible feedback on this project - your support means so much to us here at Janie Crow!  On Instagram last week followers were invited to share images of their Janie Crow projects using #myfavouritejaniecrow in order to be in with a chance to win the fabulous Emma Ball, Spirit of Flora goodies shown below.  Congratulations to Hilary who won the first prize and runner up JaViDaCrochet. We hope they enjoy their prizes. Do take a look at their amazing work on their Instagram profiles. We have featured a couple of their images below to give you an idea of how lovely their feeds are!   On our Facebook page it has been all about Spirit of Flora over the last couple of weeks as we counted down to release day this week, but we also shared a link to the Creativity Found Podcast on which I was a special guest recently. A couple of our followers shared with us that this was the very first podcast they had ever listened to and how much they enjoyed it, so do have a listen.   I've made good progress with my Bohemian Blooms project since I was here last month. My aim was to have all four Gordon motifs completed and that has very nearly happened, with two completely finished and the other two just needing their pesky ends sewing in and their slip stitches added to the sides. 'Ends' I hear you say, surely she should be sewing those in as she goes along? You are absolutely correct, I confess to a total lack of self-discipline with ends, but in my defence I was enjoying the crochet so much I didn't want to stop and sew in, I just wanted to keep hooking! Here's the first fully completed Gordon in all its splendour:  My next aim was to have completed at least one Harmony motif and I'm pleased to report that I managed that as well! I thoroughly enjoyed crocheting this motif. It was nice to be working in the round rather than rows and I've always liked the way rounds are layered to create texture and that gorgeous 3D effect in motifs like this. The final round adds surface crochet (the round in blue that you can see in the image below) and it was interesting to see how that pop of contrasting colour totally lifted the motif.  So, what's the plan for the coming month? Well, I'm aiming to have the full set of Gordon motifs completely finished, ends and all, as well as the second Bloomsbury strip completed. I'm a quarter of the way through the repeats on that one. Then there will be three more Harmony motifs to make and I'd like to have at least one of the next part made too. That is Fitzroy, another block worked in rows, similar to Gordon, also with a row of beaded crochet (can't wait!). Quite an ambitious task list but I'm hoping the motivation of seeing the little piles of completed blocks growing will be the incentive to spur me on! See you next month. Gemma x  This week's recipe suggestion from Gemma is for a lovely carrot and coriander soup.  Spring is really taking its time to warm up here in North London, with some particularly chilly days this week, so a warming bowl of soup at lunchtime always goes down a treat. This interesting recipe/article in The Guardian newspaper discusses the many possible variations and is well worth the read.  A few weeks ago on both Facebook and Instagram we tackled the thorny subject of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the world of design and talked about the increasing number of images that are appearing on social media of so called 'crocheted' works. This is now starting to feed through to selling sites such as Etsy, with AI generated images being used to sell crochet patterns. You can read more here or click on the image below:  We regularly do a web search to find interesting crochet postbox toppers and have shared some fantastic versions with you in our newsletters, but we have to say that this is one of our favourites so far! It was made by Amanda McNath in Rottingdean last summer.  If you've ever been to an English seaside resort, you may well have experienced the slightly unnerving (or perhaps very terrifying) phenomenon of having your lunch stolen by a hungry seagull! In Venice a few years ago we saw one steal a whole large pizza from a poor boy's freshly opened take away box. It flew off across the water and guzzled down the whole pizza in just a couple of gulps mid air - How greedy!   Hopefully by the time you are reading this Quick Catch Up email, Andy and I will be well on our way to completing set up for Wonder Wool Wales. As we don't do anywhere near as many shows and events as we used to, we are really looking forward to being on our stand all weekend and have packed lots of warm clothes to help us keep cosy!  Our fabulous friends Sarah and Paul will be joining us on the stand for the weekend and we will have lots of goodies on display, including all our sample blankets, cushions and wraps. We will also have lots of the wonderful Emma Ball stock (including items from the new Spirit of Flora range) and the Della Q crafters bags, so if you are coming to the show, please pop along to our stand to say hello!  Next Tuesday will be Andy's birthday, but as things are so busy at the moment we won't be heading out to celebrate until next Friday when he has requested a family meal at his favourite Indian restaurant. Cheers Andy and Happy Birthday! Now that the first set of patterns for Spirit of Flora have been released I am hoping that the next couple of weeks will prove a little calmer and that I will be able to continue with some new design work. I have started a new piece of crochet, which I am really enjoying and so it has been a little frustrating not being able to find much time to dedicate to it. I have a couple of workshop projects to sort out too, so there isn't really spare time to procrastinate! I hope that whatever you have planned over the next couple of weeks goes to plan and that you are able to find time to settle down with your hook and favourite project for a restorative yarn fix too! I will be back in your in-box in a fortnight's time with the May newsletter....    Today sees the release of the newest version of my Persian Tiles Blanket design in the shape of 'Peppercorn', a blanket inspired by the colours used in the Sandalwood version, but made using natural yarns from the fabulous West Yorkshire Spinners range. You can find a free yarn substitution document for this colourway here and you can find more information by following this link.  If you would like to make the original navy and orange colourway of the Persian Tiles blanket using natural yarns, then check out our West Yorkshire Spinners version.  The Getting Ready information for the launch of the revamped Spirit of Flora patterns is now live on the Janie Crow website. The free downloadable document includes information about yarns needed, the pattern release schedule as well as crochet related information such as choosing your project layout, how to achieve the correct tension, reading charts and dealing with yarn ends, as well as some background information about my inspiration and design process.  The first four patterns, Leaf Trellis, Moffatt Flower, Merton Abbey Flower and Tudor Rose, will be published in less than a fortnight's time on 24th April and you will be able to purchase single patterns or a bundle of all four, either as download or printed copies in UK or US terms. We will release four further patterns in June and the final four in August. The patterns for plainer crochet squares and the three edging patterns will be available for free on the website over the next few months, alongside a download document designed to guide you through the making up and finishing process.  Emma created a lovely reel on our Instagram feed this week where she focussed on the first four motifs we are going to release. You can find it by following this link.   With the re-release of the patterns for the Spirit of Flora crochet along project on the horizon we have been looking back at my past CALs and I can't believe that I now have ten projects under my belt since 2015! All the projects listed below are still available and I have added links so that you can find more information about each of them. 2015: Lily Pond 2016: Frida's Flowers 2017: Sunshine and Showers 2018: Bohemian Blooms 2019: Climbing Rose Wrap 2020: Fruit Garden 2021: Indigo Dreams 2022: Glad Tidings Wrap 2023/24: Spirit of Flora   My lovely friend and fellow Stylecraft Yarns Blogstar Emma Varnam has written a great piece about art inspiring crochet design in the current issue of Inside Crochet Magazine. Emma talks about her love of Brambly Hedge and how the work of Swedish artists Carl and Karin Larsson has influenced her work. She has been kind enough to also include some of my work, along with a few of my words on the subject of how art inspires my crochet design. I’d love to know what paintings or pieces of artwork have inspired you. Do you have a favourite painting or painter? Is there a textile or fashion designer you love? Let us know how the work of artists makes you feel and whether or not you can see a link between the work of other designers and the world of art.   We have some fabulous new additions to the Emma Ball range of accessories in stock now. You can find them by following this link to our store. You can find our fabulous range of project pouches and bags here and the tin collection here. I am so pleased with all the new items that feature the Spirit of Flora design. They are just so colourful and cheeryl!  I have agreed to tutor a couple of residential workshops for Stitchtopia next year. I will be going to Switzerland in April and will be returning to West Yorkshire to do a week long tour in June. I am also hoping that a trip to Morocco is on the cards for Autumn 2025 - I will let you know about this one when more information is available. Switzerland - April 2025 Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland, lies at the north end of Lake Zurich. During our stay here, you'll enjoy two full-day workshops with me, spend a day exploring Old Town Zurich with a local guide, and sail on Lake Zurich to the home of Lindt chocolate. The Swiss Yarn Festival is the event for all wool and yarn enthusiasts! Knitting, crocheting, spinning and weaving are all represented, and you’ll enjoy a full day here. West Yorkshire - June 2025 Join me in West Yorkshire for 6 days of workshops and yarn-themed excursions. On this retreat, visit the Knitting & Crochet Guild, a treasure trove of textile wonders. The collection is housed in a former mill in Slaithwaite, a village also home to Stylecrafts, where we will have a behind-the-scenes tour of the mill. Our learning of wool production continues with tours of British Wool in Bradford and West Yorkshire Spinners. There will also be the opportunity for some local sightseeing as you spend some time in Saltaire Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Peru 2024 Peru has the longest continuous history of textile production in the world, going back almost 10,000 years. Invented long before pottery and just as humans started agriculture, Peruvian fibre manipulation began with simple spun fibres but by 500 AD this rudimentary craft had developed into complex techniques. On our travels we’ll explore the processes involved in the production of textiles, including the most characteristic garment, the chullo, a knitted hat with an earflap and a calendar waistband that depicts the annual cycles of ritual and agricultural life, and we'll meet local artisans whose traditions have been passed down through the centuries. I am busy designing both knit and crochet projects for participants to make while we are away in Peru.   I am really looking forward to the meet and greet event at yarn store No3 Royston next Wednesday 17th April. The evening will include my talk about my design process and crochet career followed by a Q&A session. There will also be a chance to show off your Janie Crow makes and enjoy some nibbles and drinks. This is one of the few events I will be doing this year, so it would be great to see those of you who can make it! you can find more information by following this link or clicking on the poster image above.  I am not the most committed reader and tend to like books that are easy to pick up and put down - the type that I can dip into and not have to think about too much. As a result I tend to opt for more factual books, those about lifestyle choices, health and diet for example, alongside arty books such as artist profiles or collections of art works. Despite my poor reading record I am really drawn to books and often mooch around book shops in the hope of finding a good read. I am definitely an advocate of Tsundoku, the Japanese art of collecting and arranging books in a pile ready to (maybe) read at some point!  I thought it might be good to start adding a book recommendation to the monthly newsletter and so I invite you to send in the details of your current favourite read so that I can share it with others. I will kick off with a book that I have mentioned before - it was recommended to me a few months ago by Sarah at Inside Crochet Magazine: 52 Ways to Walk, by Annabel Streets. You can find more info by following this link.  Emma's been making yummy granola this week using this recipe from Cookie and Kate.  Homemade granola is quick and easy to make and oh so delicious! Andy used to make it for us here in the Crowfoot household, but it was just so good that we tended to eat it when it was still warm and fresh out of the oven, so for the sake of our waistlines we reverted to our daily porridge and Weetabix! If you're in the UK and looking for environmentally friendly ingredients to make your own granola, make sure you take a look at Quaker Oats as they come plastic free in a cardboard box. Ditto Flahavan's Oats, which are organic and come in paper bags. If you can find a local refill store to purchase your nuts and seeds too then the plastic use is reduced even further. Perhaps now is a good time to ditch those instant oat cups and traditional cereals?   Having referred in my introduction to the dreadful weather of late, it is a relief to have had a little bit of sunshine the last couple of days. It has even been a little warmer and so, as the evening light is getting longer since the clocks changed a fortnight ago, I am looking forward to a weekend at home. We went to see Les Miserables at the theatre last weekend and it was fantastic! I have been hoping to go for years, since seeing the film in 2016, so it was a dream come true to finally get there. I have been humming the tunes all week and might have to dig out the DVD over the weekend to watch the film again. A perfect accompaniment to a spot of crochet I think! The garden is finally springing into life and we have had some really beautiful tulips coming into flower over the last week. The peonies are coming into bud too, and as they are one of my favourite flowers, I am really looking forward to them flowering in May. I really love this time of year in the garden.  If you are looking for a bit of colour in your life - I stumbled over a great fashion site called Farm Rio this week. The knitwear is wonderfully retro 80's and the dresses are colourful and packed with pattern - great inspiration if you are looking for colour palettes.
Talking of colour combinations - this week has seen the reveal of Kaffe Fassett's collaboration with Morris & Co to produce a range of fabrics for the Free Spirit range. I have to admit I am not totally sold on the revamped shades used to update William Morris's amazing designs, but it is always good to see Morris designs at centre stage. We have a quiet weekend ahead, but a busy couple of weeks to look forward to before we get to the end of the month. I hope you have a lovely couple of days ahead whatever you are doing. Janie x |
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